Full Throttle

It’s hard to believe but it has been 20 years since Richard Petty won his 200th NASCAR Cup Series race. The King’ (Richard Petty) did a lot of amazing things behind the wheel of a stock car. Winning 200 races, and then winning his 200th at Daytona, is just absolutely incredible. I don’t believe we’ll ever see that again. I certainly don’t know if you’ll ever see it done the way ‘The King’ did it. Having President Reagan there and winning his 200th at the same time - you can’t paint a better picture. But, we are still going to give it our best this weekend.

I guess I’ll have to go to ‘The King’ and ask him if I can get some of that magic of 20 years ago to rub off on me this weekend. I can’t think of a better time, track, or car to get my first Cup win than this weekend. I think a lot of people want to see that #43 Dodge back in victory lane - especially ‘The King.’ He’s still very involved in this operation. He’s always around, and that is something that is unique to Petty Enterprises.

I’ve been fortunate enough to have driven for some great people. Richard Childress and Dale Earnhardt both had great stories. It’s the same thing walking around the shop at Petty Enterprises. Just to listen to ‘The King’ speak and tell stories. You just sit there and soak it all in. You can stop at the shop and see ‘The King’ and Dale (Petty’s former crew chief Dale Inman) both there. They will be reliving something that happened years ago and it’s pretty exciting just to be able to listen to their stories.

Times have changed, however, and that means different racing at Daytona. Today, we race under the control of a restrictor plate and that has changed the complexion of racing at Daytona. I understand the need for the plate, and safety should be the number one priority in our sport, but the restrictor plate really takes the racing out of the driver’s hands. I mean, sure, we are still the ones driving the cars, but to pass and draft, you need help from other guys. That’s tough when everyone is trying to win.

You just depend on too many outside variables at these races. It’s more riding around and trying to survive. If you get out of the night without a wrecked car you have done a pretty decent job. That is just the way it is these days with the plate. Nobody has the answer right now, but we all know that NASCAR has certainly tried, and it still working, on getting a better solution. I think everyone will be happy to see the tight packs gone.

We are all in same the position. Every driver Saturday night will need help from somebody else to win the race. Everyone is going to be counting on friends. Do I have enough friends out there? I don’t know, but I sure do hope so. I do know that I’ll have one of the sport’s biggest fans on my side. Driving the #43 Cheerios Dodge carries a lot of weight, especially racing it at Daytona. ‘The King’ will be expecting a lot, and I want nothing more than to share in the celebration that he had 20 years ago.

The Driver Diaries

Andy Belmont, part time NEXTEL Cup driver who also runs full time in the ARCA ReMax Series takes on the current sponsorship problems of NASCAR.

We have grown to be such a politically correct nation and world it makes me want to puke. Read the papers daily and the clear cut ability to abandon any level of common sense has struck the main stream. Do people really believe some of the trash they are preaching?

Influence, in my opinion, starts at home. My kids wont wear clothes that are so big you need a rope to hold them up and they will get grounded if they walk in the house with a baseball hat on backwards. That stuff might be mainstream and cool to some folks, not in my house.

That being stated, conversations with my kids are most informative and it made me really think about the common sense thing. So, here goes:

Unaided recall response to sponsor logo’s. My little guy, like most little boys, likes Dale Earnhardt Jr. What is not to like? His handlers have him in just about every facet of everyday mainstream America from car rentals to cologne. So, yesterday at lunch, I asked Brett, “What does Dale Earnhardt represent?” Without a second hesitation he said, “Laundry Soap.” “What,” I said? “Yes, dad, isn’t Budweiser soap? They wash those cool horses with Budweiser soap, right dad?” So much for worrying about advertising brainwashing my kids.

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There is little question DEI, in general, and Dale Earnhardt Jr., in particular, have dominated restrictor-plate racing over the past few years. The larger question is just how dominant he has become in the sport.

Earnhardt Jr. and Michael Waltrip, DEI’s other full-time driver, return to Daytona for Saturday’s running of the Pepsi 400, where, once again, they will be odds-on favorites.

In the 14 races held at Daytona and Talladega since 2001, Earnhardt Jr. has won six and has been second three times, and Waltrip has won four and has been runner-up in two others.

So, their superiority is clearly established. What is not quite so clear is where Earnhardt Jr. stands in the hierarchy of Nextel Cup drivers, how much the others defer to him on the issues of the day -whether or not he is their de facto leader.

There is no question that as far as most of the racing public is concerned, Earnhardt Jr. is the face of Nextel Cup racing. In itself, that means his words carry weight. Even if he doesn’t particularly want to be out front, Earnhardt Jr. is out front. And to some extent, everybody has to recognize that, both in the NASCAR garage and front office.

Former driver Chad Little, commenting on television’s “NASCAR This Morning,” summed it up well.

NASCAR’s new point system was discussed, and Little remarked, “Dale Jr. really hasn’t said where he stands yet, and we really don’t know where we all stand until he speaks.” While the remark was made somewhat in jest, it also illustrates how much stature Earnhardt has in the sport.

Source: The Ledger
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I should think Jack Roush and Jeff Burton should take a road trip north.

NASCAR now has a business home north of the border. But don’t expect a NEXTEL Cup race in Canada anytime soon.

NASCAR’s recent announcement heralding the formation of NASCAR Canada, a collaboration with television partner TSN, is aimed at opening a door for - and to - Canadian business interests. With an office in Toronto, Canadian companies intrigued by the NASCAR brand name will have a place to seek out marketing agreements.

At the same time, corporations already aligned with North America’s most popular racing series can now make inroads into Canada. But that doesn’t mean racing here.

The lack of a venue would curtail any thoughts of having a NEXTEL Cup race in the near future. Cayuga Speedway near Hamilton Ontario would be ideal short track for the trucks and a Busch race. It would also draw NASCAR fans from the upstate/Buffalo NY area.

After all is said and done, NASCAR is about money:

In a country that hosts three Champ Car events and a Formula One race, NASCAR remains the most popular form of racing for Canadian racing fans in terms of television audience.

And studies suggest that Canadians represent up to 10 per cent of overall ticket sales for its races.

What’s that old saying, “follow the money?” I give NASCAR 2 years and you will see a race at Cayuga or Mosport park in Canada.

Jeff Gordon wrapped up a near perfect weekend Sunday, starting from the pole and racing to an overpowering victory in the NASCAR race at Infineon Raceway.

Gordon picked up his fourth victory on the 1.99-mile, 10-turn road course, winning for the third time from the pole. It also extended his own Nextel Cup record for road racing wins to eight and gave him three for the season and 67 for his career.

“We’ve had some bad finishes lately and we wanted this one real bad,” said Gordon, who got out of his No. 24 Chevrolet soaked with sweat and just about spent after leading 92 of 110 laps on a hot afternoon at the scenic wine country circuit.

“I drove out and got as big a lead as I could and gave a lot of it up there at the end,” said Gordon, who had his overheated driver’s seat iced down during his last pit stop. “It was real tough.”

It didn’t look that way.

Gordon beat surprising Jamie McMurray, in only his second start at the Sonoma track, to the finish line by 1.032-seconds - about 10 car-lengths, with road racing specialist Scott Pruett third.

McMurray said he never thought he had a shot at Gordon in Sunday’s Dodge/Save Mart 350.

“He was just so strong out there,” last year’s top rookie said. “I think that Jeff was kind of cruising there at the end.”

Kurt Busch started third and vaulted past both Gordon and Rusty Wallace to grab the lead on the first lap, but Gordon quickly moved back into the top spot and stayed there the rest of the way except during pit stop sequences.

He made his final stop on lap 68 during one of six caution periods. When he got back on track, Gordon found himself behind Casey Mears and rookie Kasey Kahne, both of whom had pitted earlier.

Gordon quickly disposed of Kahne on the restart on lap 70, but it took him until lap 74 before he could work his way past former open-wheel racer Mears. Once Gordon got back on top, he was never challenged again.

Meanwhile, McMurray got past Wallace and Mears to grab second on lap 79, then spent the rest of the race trying without success to cut into Gordon’s lead.

Wallace, another of NASCAR’s best road racers, was right behind Pruett in fourth when he ran out of gas after crossing the finish line a lap from the end. He wound up 28th as Michael Waltrip, who started 40th in the 43-car field, took over fourth place.

Series leader Jimmie Johnson, Gordon’s teammate, finished fifth. Dale Earnhardt Jr. recovered from two spins to finish 11th, but fell from seven to 27 points behind Johnson in the season standings.

Veteran Ron Hornaday fought off young guns David Stremme and Shane Hmiel to win Saturday night’s NASCAR Busch Series Alan Kulwicki 250 at the Milwaukee Mile.

Hornaday battled back from a lap down and took the lead from Hmiel with six laps to go to score his fourth career Busch win. Hornaday drove his Richard Childress Racing AC Delco Chevrolet to his first win since scoring a victory at Nazareth 38 races ago.

“Those kids (Stremme and Hmiel) were running their guts out and I thought I could catch them, but (my crew chief) Butch Hylton said to just save your stuff and sure enough the more I saved it the more I rolled up into the middle of the corner and gave them more pressure to start racing each other harder and that?s when they started to loosen each other up and start spinning their tires,” said Hornaday. “In the end it gave us fresher tires.”

Polesitter Stremme looked to be on his way to his first career win when he got loose in turn four while leading on lap 220. The slide dropped him back to fourth before he was able to rally for the runnerup finish.

“I gave that race away,” a dejected Stremme reasoned. “We freed the car up a bit and I was just riding around in first, probably running too hard, and I slid the car off the corner and got up in the marbles. I guess you have to give them away before you can finally win one, but I?m confident we can still pull off a victory this year.”

Jason Keller finished third, after running over Hmiel on the final turn. Hmiel, who led a race-high 95 laps, wound up fourth with Bobby Hamilton, Jr. rounding out the Top 5.

Mike Bliss, Greg Biffle, David Green, Martin Truex, Jr., and Clint Bowyer completed the first ten finishers.

Source: Racing One

… is a racer that started their career at the age of 13.

Jesica Matzdorf always wanted to drive the family car down the long driveway at her family’s home in Grand Rapids, but her father, Bill, wouldn’t let her until she got her driver’s license.

But Jesica Matzdorf didn’t want to wait until she was 16. She wanted to drive now, so three years ago Jesica and Bill Matzdorf came up with a compromise: She could race in the pure stock classes at Grand Rapids Speedway and Hibbing Raceway.

With parental permission, the pure stock entry-level classes allow drivers to start racing before they have a regular driver’s license. It was the perfect fit for Jesica Matzdorf. After some trial and error, the 17-year-old has established herself as a driver who can not only compete against the boys, but one who can beat them.

“I’ve had my share of ups and downs,” Matzdorf said. “The very first lap I had the car out on the track I spun out, and last year I rolled the car over, but I think I’ve established myself as just another driver. At first, it was like, ‘She’s just a little girl. We better not hit her.’ But then when I started beating them, they didn’t like that.”

Now in her fourth season, Matzdorf was off to her best start in the pure stock class before going to France earlier this month as part of her French class. Prior to the trip, she was first in points at Hibbing and was close to cracking the top 10 at Grand Rapids.

“The other drivers race Jesica just as hard as they race the rest of the guys — if not harder,” said Hibbing Raceway president Bill Engelstad. “But to Jesica’s credit, she isn’t afraid to rub doors with them, that’s for sure.”

Part of Matzdorf’s success is that rather than switch cars every year, she is continuing to race with the 1987 Monte Carlo she drove last year. Her familiarity with the car has helped her on the track.
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… they just pull in for an elongated pitstop. Nick Trgovich isn’t ready for that final “gas an go” and even at the young age of 79 he still has the desire to rub a few finders and play “bumper tag” with the rest of the boys at Illiana Motor Speedway.

A front-runner at Illiana more than 50 years ago, Trgovich got the bug to go racing again a few years ago after driving a NASCAR-type stock car at the Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet during a session of the Richard Petty Driving Experience.

The Petty Experience gives fans a taste of the real thing, as they are able — under strict supervision — to wheel a race car at more than 130 miles per hour on a super speedway.

“The instructor asked me if I had done this before,” Trgovich said. “He told me, ‘You can handle a car. You must have done this before.’ ”

Trgovich’s reply: “Yes, 50 years ago!”

A native of East Chicago, Trgovich began racing in the early 50’s, making the then-dirt Illiana oval and the old Savage Speedway in Gary his regular stomping grounds.

Trgovich and six other drivers were featured in Illiana’s 1953 souvenir program as the track’s “Big Seven” for their stock car exploits during the ‘52 season at Illiana.

One of Trgovich’s stock car rides was a ‘39 Ford coupe with a Cadillac engine in it.

“We ran the thing between 8,500 and 9,000 rpms,” Trgovich said. “The thing really flew on the dirt at Illiana. We were pulling 650 horsepower. It sounded like a P51 (fighter plane).”

The car didn’t have the safety features of today’s models.

Still, Trgovich, said, “I had what could be considered an early version of a roll cage. I had an aluminum seat out of an airplane and a lap (safety) belt.”

After about 10 years of racing, Trgovich’s driving career came to an end.

“I was just too busy,” he said. “I was married and raising a family and getting involved in my body shop business. We had three race cars there and it was interfering with the business.”

Over the years, Trgovich has owned two area body shops, a local marina and two country and western bars.

Other than attending a few NASCAR events every year and watching the races at Illiana, he pretty much figured his racing days were done.

Then he tried the Petty Driving Experience.

“(NASCAR drivers) Rusty Wallace and Bill Elliott are my favorites because I guess they’re older than the rest of them and I’m old, too,” Trgovich said with a laugh. “My wife (Pat) and daughter (Lisa) surprised me with the driving school for my birthday and that kind of started something.”

Feeling the old sensation of being behind the wheel of a stock car, Trgovich planned on getting his own car for the Saturday night action at Illiana.

“I had sold my boat that I had and I said I’m going to get me a race car,” Trgovich said. “Of course, my wife and daughter were against it, but I bought it anyways.”

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Polesitter Ted Musgrave retook the lead with nine laps remaining and became the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series’ seventh different winner of the season with a victory Friday night in the Black Cat Fireworks 200.

Musgrave, who pitted his Dodge from the lead on the 129th lap and restarted the race in 18th position, methodically worked his way through the field at The Milwaukee Mile. He passed series points leader Dennis Setzer’s Chevrolet at Lap 197 and pulled away to win by 1.479 seconds — about a dozen truck-lengths.

Musgrave, winner of the race in 2001, led 109 of 205 laps to win at an average speed of 82.230 mph. The race was the slowest of 10 series events at the one-mile oval due to 45 laps run under the yellow flag. The scheduled 200-lap distance was extended five laps by caution.

Musgrave won $53,885 plus an $18,000 bonus for his victory from the pole. His last victory came in September 2003 at California Speedway.

Chad Chaffin, also driving a Dodge, finished second by the length of truck’s bumper over Setzer. Steve Park was fourth in a Dodge with Travis Kvapil, who led laps 129 through 178, fifth in a Toyota.

Bobby Hamilton, Terry Cook, rookie Shane Sieg, Rick Crawford and Matt Crafton completed the top 10 among 18 drivers finishing all 205 laps.

In a previous commentary I outlined NASCAR’s current dilema over the sponsorship of Jeff Burton’s #99 ride. In keeping with NASCAR’s complete lack of common sense they have denied access to the multi-million dollar “hard liquor” sponsorship. You would think in a multi-billion dollar industry they could come up with a more plausable reason other than “history.”

“Although we understand the sponsorship situation with the No. 99 entry, it is very unlikely at this time that we would change such a long-standing policy for this instance,” NASCAR president Mike Helton told The Associated Press on Friday.

However, he said the sanctioning organization will continue internal discussions about the hard liquor ban.

Geoff Smith, president of Roush Racing, said he was disappointed but not surprised by the decision.

“We’ve been working together with them to assess all the historical and current reasons why that policy exists and see if there were any reasons why it should be revised,” Smith said. “My personal opinion is that 95 percent of their objection was just that — history.”

What a sad joke. Progress marches on, and with it production of more history, but in NASCAR history is only observed when politically correct.

Some historical perspective:

• “Darlington Stripe”
• Winston Cup (now NEXTEL)
• “Grand National” (relegated to the second tier of NASCAR)
• Various “yellow flag” rules
• Various race venues (too numerious to list)
• ESPN race coverage (we miss you Benny)

All the above have been sent to the historial dust bin by NASCAR, mostly for monetary reasons, yet they use “history” as an excuse to keep out British liquor giant Diageo.

NASCAR needs a few less “suits” running the show.

UPDATE: This may be part of the problem: “In Nextel series, $1 million buys helmet decals.”

One Bay Area company is betting that Jimmie Johnson can sell jeans as well as he wins NASCAR car races. When Levi Strauss of San Francisco came out with its latest line of jeans — Levi Strauss Signature brand — it decided to hook up with NASCAR as a major part of the marketing program.

“Jimmie Johnson is one of the younger drivers, he’s from California, he’s got a lot of style and he’s great looking. We feel he fit our brand,” said Levi’s director of presence marketing, Aaron Carpenter.

As the quoted headline notes Levi gets a logo on Johnson’s racing belt and two decals on his helmet, nothing more accept public appearances by Johnson and company presence at the races. Now translate that into a full sponsorship for the #99 car and it gives a vivid picture what teams are going thru.